Commemorative ring with flip-top

ABSTRACT

A finger ring comprising a shank with a commemorative outer surface design and a dihedral setting pivotably-mounted in an aperture in the shank and having a design element on at least one face of the setting. In an embodiment, the design element on at least one face of the setting is co-commemorative with the design on the shank. In an alternate embodiment a finger ring is disclosed with a uniformly-tapered shank having an ornamented outer surface and a setting pivotably-mounted in an aperture in the shank. The setting has first and second faces, and in an embodiment one of the faces comprises a design element that is co-commemorative with a design element on the shank.

BACKGROUND

Class rings and other commemorative rings have been used for well morethan 150 years to commemorate shared experiences such as high school,college or university, sports team participation, sports championships,and military service. A conventional commemorative ring will have astatic fixed setting, often a gemstone, seal or insignia, with textsurrounding the setting, and may have additional design details engravedon the shank of the ring. The setting and design details conventionallyco-commemorate related aspects of the experience commemorated by thering. For a class ring, for example, such design details can include(without limitation) the date of graduation, the wearer's name, text ordesign icons signifying the wearer's school activities and affiliations,and/or the name of the school's sports team or mascot.

SUMMARY

Disclosed is a finger ring comprising a shank with a commemorative outersurface design and a dihedral setting pivotably-mounted in an aperturein the shank and having a design element on at least one face of thesetting. In an embodiment, the design element on at least one face ofthe setting is co-commemorative with the design on the shank. In analternate embodiment a finger ring is disclosed with a uniformly taperedshank having an ornamented outer surface and a setting pivotably mountedin an aperture in the shank. The setting has first and second faces, andin an embodiment one of the faces comprises a design element that isco-commemorative with a design element on the shank.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a side view of components of an exemplary commemorativering in a pre-assembled state.

FIG. 2 depicts a cross-section view of an exemplary commemorative ringin an assembled state.

FIG. 3 depicts a perspective view of an exemplary unornamentedcommemorative ring showing an exemplary pivotable setting inmid-rotation.

FIG. 4 depicts a top view of an exemplary unornamented shank of anexemplary commemorative ring.

FIG. 5 a depicts a top view of the outer surface of an exemplary upperbase of an exemplary setting of an exemplary commemorative ring.

FIG. 5 b depicts a top view of the inner surface of an exemplary upperbase of an exemplary setting of an exemplary commemorative ring.

FIG. 5 c depicts a side view of an exemplary upper base of an exemplarysetting of an exemplary commemorative ring.

FIG. 6 a depicts a top view of the outer surface of an exemplary lowerbase of an exemplary setting of an exemplary commemorative ring.

FIG. 6 b depicts a top view of the inner surface of an exemplary lowerbase of an exemplary setting of an exemplary commemorative ring.

FIG. 6 c depicts a side view of an exemplary lower base of an exemplarysetting of an exemplary commemorative ring.

FIG. 7 depicts a perspective view of an exemplary commemorative ringshowing an exemplary pivotable setting in mid-rotation.

FIG. 8 depicts a perspective view of an exemplary commemorative ringshowing an exemplary face of an exemplary pivotable setting.

FIG. 9 depicts a perspective view of an exemplary commemorative ringshowing another exemplary face of an exemplary pivotable setting.

FIG. 10 depicts a side view of an exemplary commemorative ring.

FIG. 11 depicts another side view of an exemplary commemorative ring.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 depicts a side view of exemplary ring 5 with the main componentsin a pre-assembled state. Ring 5 has shank 10, finger hole 11, shoulder16, and rail 18. Also shown in FIG. 1 are upper base 14 and lower base12, components of the pivotable setting described in more detail below.Upper base 14 has pins 19 for aligning with lower base 12 during theassembly process. Upper base 14 and lower base 12 each have two axleslots 13, one each on opposing side of the base, which when aligned andadjoined can receive a pivot.

FIG. 2 depicts a cross-section view of exemplary ring 5 with the threecomponents of a single ring unit shank 10, upper base 14 and lower 12 inan assembled state. Upper base 14 is joined to lower base 12 to makesetting 20. FIG. 2 shows setting 20 in the orientation it would havewhen worn on the finger. Although the components of setting 20 areidentified as “upper” base 14 and “lower” base 12, the designation of“upper” and “lower” is arbitrary because setting 20 is pivotable. Inother words, in ordinary usage setting 20 may be pivoted so that lowerbase 12 is situated above upper base 14 or so that upper base 14 issituated above lower base 12.

Also shown in FIG. 2 is upper base face design element 90 in upper base14 and lower base face design element 82 in lower base 12. As describedin more detail below, upper base face design element 90 and lower baseface design element 82 may contain gemstones, text or design icons, orother design elements. FIG. 2 also shows two coaxially located pivots 52received in pivot holes 26. When upper base 14 and lower base 12 arealigned and adjoined, the respective axle slots 13 on upper base 14 andlower base 12 align to create pivot holes 26 coaxially located onopposing sides of setting 20. Setting 20 can then pivot about the commonaxis defined by pivots 52 and pivot holes 26.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view depicting ring 5 with setting 20 disposedwithin aperture 40 in mid-rotation relative to shank 10 and rail 18.FIG. 3 shows shank 10 in its unornamented state, i.e., without designdetails. Shank 10 includes shank flanges 46 on both sides of shank 10,each shank flange 46 having an outer shank flange surface 47, an innershank flange surface 49, and a shank flange edge 48. Shank 10 includesunornamented outer surface 43 to which will be added design elementssuch as text and/or design icons during manufacture of the ring. Shankflanges 46 form the overall shape of the ring, provide structuralsupport for the ring, and provide a protective frame for the designelements to be added to unornamented outer surface 43. Also depicted inFIG. 3 is aperture 40 in shank 10. Rail 18, which comprises outer railsurface 42 and an inner rail surface 44, defines and surrounds aperture40. FIG. 3 also depicts axis 45 running finger-like through the centerof finger hole 11.

FIG. 4 depicts a top view of an exemplary unornamented shank 10 showingaperture 40 without setting 20, thereby revealing pivots 52 and shankbottom 54. In an embodiment pivots 52 are approximately 2 mm long for aboys ring, 1.5 mm in a girls ring and preferably extend into aperture 40from points on opposing faces of inner rail surface 44. In theembodiment depicted in FIG. 4 the axis defined by pivots 52 is parallelto axis 45 and bisects the aperture in the horizontal plane. In analternative embodiment pivots 52 can be oriented along the axisorthogonal to axis 45. Those of skill in the art will appreciate thatother orientations or positionings of pivots or other mounting devicesmay be used to advantage. In preferred embodiments, the dimensions ofaperture 40 are 17.5 mm (length, along axis 45)×14.6 mm (width,orthogonal to axis 45) for a boys ring, and 10 mm (length)×9 mm (width)for a girls ring. Pivots 52 are preferably positioned in the verticalplane equidistant from the top and bottom of inner rail surface 44.Preferably pivots 52 are cylindrical in shape and are cast as part ofshank 10.

FIGS. 5 a through 5 c depict different views of upper base 14. FIG. 5 adepicts a top view of the outer surface of upper base 14 and showssubstantially-planar upper base face 60, call-out area 61, and incisedtext 62 in call-out area 61. Bezel 63 is angled downward at preferably a5 degree angle from the horizontal plane to form stone seat 64. Stoneseat 64 is adapted to receive a gemstone or other design element whenthe setting is fully assembled. Incised text 62 shows “CENTRAL HIGHSCHOOL” in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 a; however, those of ordinaryskill in the art will appreciate that other text or designs can beincised into call-out area 61. FIG. 5 b depicts a top view of the innersurface of upper base 14, including inner relief cavity 66, inner rim67, outer rim 68, and rim connectors 69. Mounted in each rim connector69 is a pin 19. Also shown are openings in outer rim 68 defining axleslots 13. FIG. 5 c shows a side view of upper base 14, including baseside surface 65 and pins 19.

FIGS. 6 a through 6 c depict different views of lower base 12. FIG. 6 adepicts a top view of the outer surface of lower base 12 and showssubstantially-planar lower base face 70, call-out area 71, and incisedtext 72 in call-out area 71. Bezel 73 is angled downward atapproximately a 5-degree angle from the horizontal plane to create stoneseat 74. Stone seat 74 is adapted to receive a gemstone or other designelement when the setting is fully assembled. Incised text 72 shows“CLASS OF 2015” in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6 a; however, those ofordinary skill in the art will appreciate that other text or designs canbe incised into call-out area 71. FIG. 6 b depicts a top view of theinner surface of lower base 12, including inner relief cavity 76, innerrim 77, outer rim 78, and rim connectors 79. Mounted in each rimconnector 79 is a pinhole 75. Also shown are openings in outer rim 78defining axle slots 13. FIG. 6 c shows a side view of lower base 12,including base side surface 65 and pinholes 75.

FIG. 7 depicts a perspective view of ring 5 with ornamented shank 10 andsetting 20 in mid-rotation relative to shank 10, aperture 40 and rail18. FIG. 7 shows lower base face 70, lower base incised text 72 andlower base face design element 82. FIG. 7 also shows base side surfaces65 of bases 12 and 14 and welds 84 where upper base 14 and lower base 12are joined. Also shown in FIG. 7 is ornamented outer surface 80 of shank10 with design elements 86 and 88. In the exemplary embodiment shown inFIG. 7, shank design element 86 (“DAKOTA”) is the wearer's name, andshank design element 88 includes sports icon designs of a football andbaseball glove, bats and balls. Shank design element 88 commemorates thewearer's sports activity at Central High School, the high schoolcommemorated in incised text 62 in the exemplary ring 5; and lower baseincised text 72 (“CLASS OF 2015”) commemorates the wearer's graduationdate from Central High School. FIG. 7 also shows a part of pivot 52received in pivot hole 26.

FIG. 8 depicts a perspective view of ring 5 with ornamented shank 10 andsetting 20 pivoted so that upper base 14 is up, i.e., so that upper baseface 60 is fully visible. Shown are upper base call-out area 61, upperbase incised text 62, and upper base face design element 90. Alsovisible in FIG. 8 is shank design element 94 (“PANTHERS”) commemoratingthe panthers, the name of the sports team of Central High School, thewearer's high school commemorated in incised text 62 in the exemplaryring 5. FIG. 8 shows base side surface 65 of upper base 14 and uppersurface 92 thereof, which is preferably visible whenever setting 20 ispivoted so that upper base face 60 is fully visible.

FIG. 9 depicts a perspective view of ring 5 with ornamented shank 10 andsetting 20 pivoted so that lower base 12 is up, i.e., so that lower baseface 70 is fully visible. Shown are lower base call-out area 71, lowerbase incised text 72, lower base face design element 82, and shankdesign elements 86 and 88. FIG. 9 shows base side surface 65 of lowerbase 12 and upper surface 102 thereof, which is preferably visiblewhenever setting 20 is pivoted so that lower base face 70 is fullyvisible.

FIG. 10 depicts a side view of exemplary ring 5 with ornamented shank 10and setting 20 pivoted so that lower base face design element 82 oflower base face 70 of lower base 12 can be seen in profile. Shank 10 inFIG. 10 includes design elements 86, 88, and 112, a design icon of abaseball home plate with the wearer's team number (“11”). Also shown areouter rail surface 42 of rail 18 and upper surface 102 of base sidesurface 65 of lower base 12.

FIG. 11 depicts an alternative side view of exemplary ring 5 withornamented shank 10. In addition to design element 120, shank 10 in FIG.11 includes design elements 122, a design icon of a panther, and 124, adesign icon of a panther paw, commemorating the sports team of CentralHigh School, the wearer's high school commemorated in incised text 62 inthe exemplary ring 5. Also shown are outer rail surface 42 of rail 18and upper surface 92 of base side surface 65 of upper base 14.

The width of the ring at shank bottom 54 is 6.15 mm for an exemplaryboys ring and 3.65 mm for an exemplary girls ring. The thickness of thering at shank bottom 54 is 1.87 mm for an exemplary boys ring and 1.37mm for an exemplary girls ring. The width of the ring at the top ofshank 10 (i.e., at apices 114 of shank edge 48) is 20.06 mm for anexemplary boys ring and 13.58 mm for an exemplary girls ring. As shownin FIGS. 10 and 11, the profile of shank 10 is tapered, preferablyuniformly, in an embodiment, from the top of shank 10 at the apex 114 ofeach shank flange edge 48 to shank bottom 54. In an alternativeembodiment the shank tapers from the top of the shank 10 at apex 114 ofeach shank flange edge 48 to a point between the apex 114 and shankbottom 54. The tapered shank provides additional surface area forcommemorative design detail, and the severity of the taper may be variedfor aesthetic effect.

Upper base face 60 and lower base face 70 in an exemplary embodimentpreferably have a cushion (or barrel) shape which is generallyrectangular with rounded corners and rounded sides. The shape of theupper and lower base face design elements 82 and 90 preferablycorrespond to the shape of the silhouette of base faces 60 and 70.Preferably the shape of rail 18 and aperture 40 generally correspond tothe shape of the silhouette of base faces 60 and 70. Those of skill inthe art will appreciate that the base faces, face design elements, railand aperture may have other shapes, either simple shapes (such as acircle, oval, square or rectangle), or a more complex shapes such as aletter or other design.

Exemplary face design elements are shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. Upper baseface design element 90 (FIG. 8) is a cushion-shaped single gemstone 96of a type selected by the wearer, including but not limited to abirthstone or a gemstone reflecting a school color, and mountedconventionally with two-part epoxy in stone seat 64. Lower base facedesign element 82 (FIG. 9) is a cushion-shaped panel 104 containing 20small gemstones, diamonds or cubic zirconium, conventionally mountedwith two-part epoxy in stone seat 74. The shape of the gemstone 96 inbase face design element 90, and the shape of the panel 104 in base facedesign element 82, generally correspond to the shape of the silhouetteof upper base face 60 and lower base face 70. The dimensions of anexemplary face design element is 12 mm×9 mm for a boys ring, and 6mm×4.5 mm for a girls ring. Those of skill in the art will appreciatethat other gemstones or combinations of gemstones and/or text or designicons can be used as face design elements in the faces 60 and 70 ofupper and lower bases 14 and 12 of setting 20.

Exemplary ring 5 is a high school class ring and the design elementscommemorate the wearer's high school experience. In addition to the facedesign elements, the design elements depicted in FIGS. 7, 8, 9, 10 and11 include incised text 62, 72 identifying the wearer's school and yearof graduation, text identifying the wearer's name 86, design iconsidentifying the wearer's school activities 88 and 112, and design icons120, 122, and 124 signifying the school's team name and team mascot. Thecombination of commemorative design details co-commemorate the wearer'sschool experience, i.e., the design details commemorate different orrelated aspects of the school experience commemorated by the ring, sothat the ring includes multiple design elements commemorating the same(or aspects of the same) experience or identity of the wearer. Thepivotable setting enables the wearer to select and display morecommemorative design elements than would be possible with a conventionalstatic setting, thereby increasing the co-commemorative effect andsymbolic value of the ring. Those of skill in the art will appreciatethat there are many other types of text, icons, and face elements thatcan be used to commemorate a school experience, including but notlimited to school motto, seal, or insignia, initials, insignia, and textand design icons relating to other activities such as band, drama, andother extracurricular activities, fraternities and sororities, honorsocieties, and clubs and civic organizations. Those of skill in the artwill further appreciate that commemorative rings are not limited toschool class rings, but can be used for any experience or identity worthof commemoration, including but not limited to sports teams, sports oracademic championships, religious affiliation, military or governmentservice, or organizational membership.

The three components of the ring (shank 10, upper base 14 and lower base12) preferably are cast independently using a plaster-cast lost-waxinvestment method. The wearer selects text, gemstones or other faceelements, and design icons to include in his or her ring. Through use ofCAD/CAM and other computer-implemented hardware and software tools, suchas preferably AliasStudio CAD/CAM software, the wearer's selections aretransformed into a CNC (computerized numeric control) language viasoftware and sent to a computerized milling machine, such as preferablya Servo 4-axis computerized milling machine, which creates precisemodels and die molds of the ring components. Using these models and diemolds, wax impressions of the wearer's ring components are created andthen adjusted to the wearer's ring size. Next, plaster is poured aroundthe wax patterns and allowed to harden. Then the wax is melted out ofthe plaster, leaving an expression of the ring in the plaster mold. Themetal chosen by the wearer (typically gold or white gold, stainlesssteel, sterling silver, platinum or other alloy) is melted and pouredinto the mold to form a casting and hardened. The plaster is discarded,the ring is cleaned, and stones are set in the ring.

When shank 10 and upper and lower bases 14 and 12 have been cast andhardened, the respective inner surfaces of upper and lower bases 12 and14 are aligned with each other by matching up pins 19 and pinholes 75and aligning axle slots 13 in the respective bases so that adjoined axleslots 13 form pivot holes 26 to fit around pivots 52 (FIGS. 5 b, 5 c, 6b, 6 c). Once upper and lower bases 14 and 12 are aligned with eachother and axle slots 13 are aligned to create pivot holes 26 to fitaround pivots 52, upper and lower bases 14 and 12 are joined byutilizing a laser welding process. Soldering or other conventionalmethods are also possible methods to join together upper and lower bases14 and 12. The length of setting 20 is 16.35 mm for an exemplary boysring and 8.95 mm for an exemplary girls ring. The width of setting 20 is13.46 mm for an exemplary boys ring and 7.42 mm for an exemplary girlsring. The height (or depth) of setting 20 when assembled is 5.13 mm foran exemplary boys ring and 3.95 mm for an exemplary girls ring. Theclearance between the side surface side 65 of bases 12 and 14 and railinner surface 44 is approximately 0.7 mm. Finishes (e.g, antiquing) areapplied and the ring is polished.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that setting 20 maybe mounted onto shank 10 in different ways in alternative embodiments.For example, pivot pins could be located on setting 20 and received bypivot holes cast into the sides of shank 10. Alternatively, pivot pinscould be spring-mounted within setting 20 or shank 10 to enable removalof setting 20 to enable interchangeability of different settings.

Although many embodiments have been described in detail, it will beapparent to those skilled in the art that many embodiments taking avariety of specific forms and dimensions and reflecting changes,substitutions and alterations can be made. The described embodimentsillustrate the scope of the claims but do not restrict the scope of theclaims.

1. A finger ring comprising: a shank having a commemorative outersurface design, and a dihedral setting pivotably-mounted within anaperture in the shank, the setting having a first face comprising afirst face design element.
 2. The finger ring of claim 1 wherein thefirst face design element and outer surface design are co-commemorative.3. The finger ring of claim 2 wherein the setting has a second facecomprising a second face design element wherein the second face designelement and the outer surface design are co-commemorative.
 4. The fingerring of claim 1 wherein the setting comprises adjoined first base andsecond base.
 5. The finger ring of claim 1 wherein the setting is notinterchangeable.
 6. The finger ring of claim 1 wherein the shank istapered.
 7. The finger ring of claim 6 wherein the shank is uniformlytapered from the top of the shank to the bottom of the shank.
 8. Afinger ring comprising: a shank having an ornamented outer surface, theshank being uniformly tapered from the top of the shank to the bottom ofthe shank, and a setting pivotably-mounted in an aperture in the shank,the setting having a substantially-planar first face and asubstantially-planar second face.
 9. The finger ring of claim 8 whereinthe first face, second face, and the aperture have substantially thesame silhouette.
 10. The finger ring of claim 8 wherein the corners ofthe setting are rounded.
 11. The finger ring of claim 8 wherein theedges of the first face and second face are rounded.
 12. The finger ringof claim 8 wherein the setting comprises a first base affixed to asecond base.
 13. The finger ring of claim 8 wherein the setting is notinterchangeable.
 14. The finger ring of claim 8 wherein said ornamentedouter surface comprises a shank design element, the shank design elementbeing commemorative.
 15. The finger ring of claim 14 wherein the firstface comprises a first face design element co-commemorative with theshank design element.
 16. The finger ring of claim 15 wherein the secondface comprises a second face design element co-commemorative with theshank design element.